Mumbai Diary: Monday Dossier

Pic/Satej Shinde

Time to mask down
The clarion call to mask up seems to have set this man on the wrong track to safety in Malad.

Museum tripping with insiders

The City Palace Museum, Udaipur. Pic/Wikimedia Commons

We may visit museums frequently, but don't get an opportunity to acquaint ourselves with the people behind its upkeep - the staff. So, a new initiative by the Museum Memories Project, an oral history initiative by Varnika Designs, aims to put the spotlight on these individuals through a series called Museum Musafir: A Museum Insider's Tale.

Each story will be released as a film, followed by a virtual QnA with the staff. Their first partnership is with The City Palace Museum in Udaipur and founder Poulomi Das (in pic) shared, "We wanted to highlight their role and make people realise that there's a lot that goes unnoticed in displays."

They're booked for a win

Bijal Vachharajani; Jerry Pinto and Pankaj Kapur feature in the shortlist

Organised by Goa-based publishing house CinnamonTeal Publishing, the Publishing Next Industry Awards acknowledges all aspects of the publishing business - from books and their covers to authors and their editors. The shortlist for the 2020 edition is out, and it seems to be an exciting race. There's veteran actor Pankaj Kapur who's been nominated for his debut novel Dopehri, while Jerry Pinto has been nominated for My Daddy and The Well in the Children's Book of the Year category. Another big name is Ruskin Bond who is in the race for Illustrated Book of the Year, while Bijal Vachharajani of Pratham Books has been nominated for Editor of the Year. Winners will be announced on March 26, so watch this space.

A new tune for the record

A gig organised by Regenerate in 2020

The idea of launching a record label is something that Bhishma Sagar, owner of city-based music events firm Regenerate, had been mulling for quite some time. But the lockdown gave him added impetus to finally kick-start the project, and he's now launched a label that's called Regenerate. "We started thinking last year about what we weren't doing in terms of promoting the music culture we stand for. The label will release music by unknown artistes who might not even have played gigs yet, but who still make really mature dance music," Sagar told this diarist.

A ton of art for everyone

Stretched Bodies by Bose Krishnamachari

There is not one single artwork that can define Indian modern art. That's what Delhi Art Gallery's (DAG) The Centum Series asserts. The week-long online sale that launches today offers 100 works by 100 artists that show the rich and varied depth of Indian modernism. From works by J Sultan Ali and FN Souza to Rekha Rodwittiya and Bose Krishnamachari, the selection, too, spans a period of approximately 100 years.

Plus, all works are priced between one and Rs 10 lakh. "It offers a great opportunity, particularly for young collectors with its diverse range both in price, and in quality. You can get works from unknown artists, well-known printmakers, paintings and sculptures by masters as well as masterly works by those lesser known to younger audiences. It is a smorgasbord of art that has something for everyone and will not disappoint you," said Kishore Singh, head of exhibitions and publications at DAG.

Dishing out for the diaspora

Pic/Alisha Vasudev

The South Asian diaspora is one of the largest across the world, with a major influence on culinary practices. To Desi, from Desh, is a virtual series by food researcher Ragini Kashyap of Third Culture Cooks, that aims to journey through the stories of migrants who came to and left South Asia. "It is an endeavour to explore our global culinary connectedness through a South Asian lens," she explained. Every month, she will focus on one population, and participants will receive information about that diaspora through recipes, podcasts, community participation, Q&A sessions and playlists. "We'll start by looking at Trinidad, Tobago and Jamaica, before moving on to Guyana and Suriname." Want to hop on this trail? Head to Third Culture Cooks's Instagram page to register.